


Blood and Tension

by Millixi77



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Characters will be added as they come into the story, Gen, Mystery, Supernatural - Freeform, Vampire AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-07
Updated: 2018-11-12
Packaged: 2019-05-19 04:38:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14866761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Millixi77/pseuds/Millixi77
Summary: The atmosphere at Hope's Peak has been tense lately, right as the 79th class is accepted into the school. Things quickly become mysterious and confusing, and not all things are as they seem...





	1. Chapter One: Orientation

**Author's Note:**

> My first multichapter story for the Danganronpa fandom, yay! I self-edit, so if any errors are spotted, it's all on me. Please tell me if there are any, so I can correct them. Also, constructive criticism is welcome!

**Chapter One**

Earlier in the day, the entire 79th class of Hope’s Peak Academy had been welcomed and had gone through the normal procedures of their Orientation Day, lasting the entire morning and afternoon.

Now it was evening, and Shuuichi was preparing to go to a second orientation. Most of the students didn’t know about it, obviously. After all, humans had no business meddling with the supernatural. The orientation he was going for was for vampires exclusively. He knew that the werewolves might or might not be having their own as well, depending on how many there were.

Shuuichi sighed and adjusted his cap. Everyone was old enough to know they had to keep themselves from being discovered by humans, so he was a bit unsure about the aim of this. Unless the school had special rules for the to follow during the school year, it would probably be a rather informal meeting with their seniors and nothing of any true substance. At the very least, he would know who some of the other vampires were. That would make things easier.

He turned to the mirror on his dresser, and quickly dropped the glamour magic that made him appear human. The differences were subtle, but noticeable when enough attention was given.

His skin was a few shades paler, his fangs were now prominent, his eyes had a subtle glow to them, and his pupils had turned snake-like. The short letter that he’d found in his room told him the basics about the meeting – its venue and start time. He was supposed to go to the entrance hall around this time, and he wouldn’t have any excuse for going late. So, it was best to leave now; it was getting close to the meeting’s start time. He didn’t want to make a bad impression after all.

…---…

Kaede, Kokichi, Tenko, Rantaro, Angie and Korekiyo. They were vampires as well. Pausing near the entrance, Shuuichi considered it. It was a bit surprising, but it wasn’t as shocking when things were considered properly.

Kokichi’s pale skin didn’t validate that conclusion. He was sure humans would be surprised to learn that vampires weren’t usually pale. Pale vampires were the exception, not the rule. Feeding usually granted vampires an average complexion. However, Kokichi’s frequent and often uncanny smiles did make him suspicious. Most other species were surprised to hear that vampires smiled often. Not just because of happiness, but as a show of strength and authority, like what werewolves did. Smiling revealed the length and sharpness of one’s fangs. The longer and sharper the fangs were, the more authority the vampire held. Looking at him without the glamor magic in place revealed that the Ultimate Supreme Leader had larger fangs than he did.

That actually hurt a little. His fangs weren’t small, but they slightly below average. Partly because he hadn’t been drinking enough blood lately… he’d been too invested in his work. Both Kokichi and Rantaro had large fangs, and both of them had roughly equal fang length, though Rantaro’s were slightly thicker. It wasn’t purely vanity driving the action after all.

Korekiyo’s appearance automatically put him between a vampire and a wraith. However, if one carefully listened when he spoke, they could detect a slight accent. It was one that automatically revealed him to have been raised in a high-ranking vampire court. The mask and bandaged hands could be a simple fashion statement or used to cope with photosensitivity.

That was one thing the myths got slightly correct. Most vampires could walk around just fine in the sun, providing they had enough blood in their systems. However, some vampires were more sensitive to sunlight, and had to be covered up to an extent, regardless of how much blood they drank. They wouldn’t turn to ashes or something ridiculous like that, but at its worst, photosensitivity could make a vampire highly uncomfortable, not to mention excessively tired. He felt a twinge of sympathy. He had mild photosensitivity himself, which was part of the reason he never took off his cap in public. Korekiyo’s seemed a bit more severe.

Tenko and Angie seemed to be the supposed outliers, Angie especially. It wasn’t unheard of for vampires to live in tropical or island areas, but those that did were usually reclusive. She was very outgoing. Though, you could never fully trust in stereotypes. He also had to admit, her carefree attitude was a bit disconcerting, as well as Tenko’s brashness. Kokichi’s attitude was the worst, in his opinion.

Maybe it was just where he was brought up, but most vampires around him were calm and subdued. There wasn’t much that would have pinpointed them as vampires; he hadn’t known them long enough to be able to fully analyze their personalities and pinpoint any telltale behaviors.

Rantaro and Kaede were easier for him to pinpoint. Their calm, slightly protective demeanors were familiar vampire behavior to him. Not only that, but their mannerisms were indicative of good breeding or, in layman’s terms, being raised as a low-ranked noble, like he was.

That, ant the fact that along with himself, Shinguuji, Tenko and Angie, they hadn’t been freaked out by Kokichi’s smiling. To be honest, Kokichi had been putting on a deliberate display of strength. Why was the question, it was only the first day? Though, some vampires liked establishing their place on the hierarchy early…

Something shuffled behind him. He turned around, and his eyes widened slightly.

Harukawa Maki. Of course, her quiet demeanor was familiar behavior, but she had simply seemed shy. Added to that, no offense to her dress sense, but red and black was a color combination that was almost automatically discrediting. But he was worse – all black for goodness sake – so he couldn’t really say anything. Apart from that, nothing gave her away.

He looked away, and at the floor. It was best not to stare, and he simply hoped the meeting would begin soon. Where were the senior who were supposed to tell them the rules?

“Wow, Saihara!” Kokichi said, a mocking grin on his face. “All black? Really? Between you and Maki, I don’t know who was trying to discredit themselves more! Nishishi!”

Saihara pushed the rim of his cap further down, and beside him, he heard something rustling. Sparing a quick glance, he saw Maki had one of her large pigtails in hand, and was glaring at the floor, pursing her lips as if stopping herself from saying something.

“Leave them alone, Kokichi,” Kaede said, “their dress sense it fine!”

“Yours is worse, degenerate male!” Tenko joined in, “White is just as bad as black and red combined, if not worse! All of those are colors commonly attributed to vampire-kind! Not only that, but your smiling didn’t help wither. Were you attempting to deliberately attempting to get pinpointed?”

“Oh, shut it, why don’t you?” Kokichi said, smiling sweetly, “I’m surprised you even noticed what I was doing, seeing as you were trying to yell the school down, spewing all of your nonsense!”

“You little shit, prepare to fight!” Tenko adopted a fighting stance. With that quick of a temper, she was a large liability…

Kokichi’s smile only got wider and more menacing, as he quickly adopted his own stance.

“Come on, you two,” Rantaro said, stepping between them. “That’s enough. It’s too early to start having disputes with one another; we barely know each other enough for that.”

Tenko hissed.

Kokichi snarled, though he straightened up. “I’d say it’s too early for flirting as well. Wouldn’t you agree, Amami?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rantaro said.

“Excuse you! That’s obviously a lie, and I hate liars! I’m next in line to rule the largest court in Japan! You really want to get on my bad side?”

Everyone else stiffened in shock for a few moments, apart from Korekiyo, Angie and Rantaro. Korekiyo looked passively interested, while Angie didn’t seem to be fully in the room at all. Rantaro, however, looked less distressed than everyone else who was. In fact, he seemed more… exasperated.

“Nishishi, that’s a lie!” But still, my beloved Amami, try keeping the flirting to a minimum. You almost gave me a headache, what with how obvious it was.”

Kaede spluttered. “D-Don’t just change the subject like that –“

Kokichi whirled around to face her, a bright smile on his face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Tenko gasped. “You are lying, degenerate male! You know exactly what she was talking about, you –“

“Are we interrupting something?” a bored voice asked behind them.

Everyone aside from Korekiyo, Maki, Angie and Rantaro jumped.

Shuuichi whirled around, confused. Two seniors were behind them: Junko Enoshima and Kyoko Kirigiri, of the 78th class. None of them looked particularly surprised, and it seemed like Kyoko had spoken.

“Nope! Nothing’s been interrupted at all!” Kokichi chirped, smiling brightly once again. “Just friendly banter! Nishishi!”

He didn’t even have to announce it was a lie; that one was so obvious it was painful.

“Well, whatever it was, stop it!” Junko snapped. Then she regained her composure. “Now, we’re assuming you have functioning brain cells, and that you remember who we are.” Her expression was now imperious, almost royal.

“Seeing as you’ve made headlines at one point or another, we definitely know your names,” Shuuichi said quietly.

“Good!” Junko said. “You’re not complete idiots after all.” She examined her nails after that, as if bored.

At this, Korekiyo snickered slightly, and Angie hummed and put her hands in a praying position. Rantaro looked like he’d seen behavior like that many times before and looked bored. Kaede and Tenko looked confused. Tenko looked slightly angry. Maki showed no reaction. He was already feeling slightly overwhelmed.

“Enough, Junko,” Kyoko said, brushing her braid behind her ear. “We’re here to give them an orientation, not insult them, or exchange banter.”

“Well, we needed some way to get their attention, you know,” Junko said. “And now we got it!” she made a sweeping motion with her arm, gesturing to them. Inwardly, Shuuichi prayed he wouldn’t have to interact much with Junko. She seemed a bit... off, about her.

Indeed, questionable methods or not, we do have their attention, Kyoko agreed. She then turned towards them formally. “Now here are the basic rules…”

Outside, a bat screeched.


	2. Chapter Two: Goings-On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of random lore for this AU I've made: vampires can utilize magic, to an extent. All of them have mastered the basic glamour magic used to hide themselves from magic, but not many go on to actually learn spells and cash in on the talent. Some do, and a higher concentration of the ones at Hope's Peak have done so.

**Chapter Two**

Exactly one month later, Shuuichi was on his way to the cafeteria. It was nice to walk through the halls at night… They lost the noisy, bustling atmosphere that prevailed during the day and became for more peaceful at night. The difference was almost jarring. That was life. Speaking of life, he decided to think of his own while he headed to his destination.

 

A lot of interesting developments had taken place within his class. They were a colorful assortment of characters, and as such, colorful encounters abounded between them. But, he’d only hink over the major ones.

 

For a first, both Kaito and Tenko had gained very quick and deep crushes. Kaito for Maki, and Tenko for Himiko. However, neither had quite worked out. Himiko, was now having a hard time shaking off an overeager Tenko, who just wouldn’t get the message to back off. Most likened her to an overactive puppy who liked to hang around their owner a lot. Himiko, however, didn’t agree with the sentiment, comparing her to an annoying mosquito that couldn’t be killed. She usually tried to avoid Tenko. Kaito, however, had nursed a serious case of heartbreak after Maki had quickly and firmly shot him down. That was the only noteworthy thing she had done so far. She was even more of a recluse than he was, oddly. One would think that the Ultimate Child Caregiver would be more outgoing, but reality was different from expectations. Nobody seems to be able to draw her out of her shell. At the very least, Kaito had healed quickly.

 

Secondly, he was getting along well with his classmates, thanks to the combined efforts of Kaede and Kaito. They were the friendliest people in the class, so it wasn’t surprising that even he had warmed up to them eventually. In return, they had helped him interact a little better with the rest of his classmates… and even initiate contact at all. They were simply easy to be around, and he found himself drawn to them, Kaede especially. Mainly because it was nice to be able to speak freely with another vampire and not have to conceal it all to himself all the time.

 

Also, unsurprisingly, Kokichi now had the reputation of the class trickster. His lies were already legendary within the class, and he was sure that Kokichi would bear that title proudly for the rest of high school. However, the Ultimate Supreme Leader could be tolerable, but just barely. It was a running joke that the rare times that the boy did something that could be perceived as nice, he deliberately soured it. Nothing ever seemed to be don’t out of true malice – it was more like someone searching for entertainment. At least, that was the optimistic version of it.

 

Shuuichi really didn’t want to consider the alternative… that would mean truly acknowledging what was going on outside the school. And for all the professionalism he could muster when looking into the initial investigation, personally, he didn’t want to touch on it. Most people seemed to take the worst opinion they had of him, and thus, Kokichi was usually avoided.

 

For four, Rantaro, Angie and Korekiyo were getting along nicely. One would think that their talents would clash with one another, but they meshed surprisingly well. The same could be said of Kiibo and Gonta. Not only that, but they were already recognized as the two most innocent students of the class, just as Miu Iruma was now recognized as the most morally bankrupt. Most already tended to avoid her, just to get away from her abrasive personality and unsubtle, unwanted innuendos. Only Kaede, Kiibo, Gonta and Kokichi willingly hung around her. Kiibo and Gonta were both very naïve and kind, so they really couldn’t get out of hanging around her occasionally and tolerating her behavior. Kiibo also needed to hand around for periodic maintenance. Kokichi’s motives, were unclear. Kaede, however, was determined to find the good in her – if there was any – and everyone admired her efforts. 

 

Nobody commented on the fact that despite Kaede’s claims to want to help _everyone_ , she, like everyone else, avoided one specific student in the class, yet still tried to help the _second_ -most disliked person in the class. Well, nobody could go saying anyone was hypocritical at this point, but it was noticeable.

 

Kirumi, Ryoma and Himiko seemed to be the only ones apart from Maki who hadn’t really seen much remarkable progress. Nothing much had shifted about them, and they were reclusive but content. Shuuichi appreciated that sentiment, and thus left them to their own devices.

 

Shuuichi hummed under his breath, smiling slightly. The school year seemed to be starting well enough. His classmates were (mostly) tolerable, and his classes were alright. Seeing as he was the second Ultimate Detective, he was slated to begin training with the first one, starting from next week She’d been busy finishing another case, and he suspected that they would be working on the most recent series of murders. A serial killer, again, seeming to take in the style of Genoocider Syo, but with their own twist to it. They called this one “The Butcher.” It was a bemusingly fitting name… Anyway, now wasn’t the time to be deliberating on that… he had a very specific thing to do.

 

He went into the cafeteria and made a beeline for a cooler placed near the back. This was one of the things they’d gone over in orientation: how the students would get their regular blood supply. He opened the cooler and took out an opaque plastic bottle, and quickly opened it and drank from it.

 

Blood. Delicious, life-sustaining blood neatly packaged and discreetly distributed to the students who needed it once a week. This way, the students didn’t have to worry about hunting, and the human students were safe from any ravenous vampire attacks. It was always supplied in the cafeteria at nighttime, well after curfew. Students weren’t allowed to enter the cafeteria, or really leave their rooms after curfew, according to the official rulebook. However, it was a running joke around the vampires that they neglected to put ‘human’ in front of the ‘students’ part. A joke in poor taste, but still a joke.

 

He was grateful for this; if it hadn’t been in place, that would have meant that hunting would require the entire class to go out as a group to hunt, with a teacher to make sure they didn’t stray from the territory they would be restricted to, as normal private school protocol. All to make sure that no students did anything that could expose the secret. By high school level, it was almost unneeded, but a custom kept over from elementary and middle school. No offense to his classmates but being around them could be very exhausting even on a normal routine, thoughtless of while hunting. But somehow, they were the most peaceful class Hope’s Peak had seen in years. Apparently the 77th class hadn’t been very calm, and the 78th class had just taken the cake.

 

Frankly, he just hoped the peace would last.

 

As he finished off the bottle of blood he suddenly felt as if he was being watched.

 

“Thirsty already my beloved Saihara?”

 

Shuuichi whirled around. “Kokichi?”

 

“Nishishi, in the flesh!” Sure enough, Kokichi was standing behind him, smiling widely. No, there was no reason to feel cowed into submission… ugh, this was deliberate, wasn’t it? Shuuichi cringed slightly.

 

“Are you going to feed as well?” Something felt suspicious…

 

“Yep! I just didn’t expect you to be here, is all!”

 

That was a blatant lie. In this current situation, that didn’t really feel reassuring…

 

“Really?” It would be expected that he’d be the first in his class who had to feed; it was no secret that his reserves were low. Vampires had a sixth sense that let them know if other vampires were low on energy or not. It was a literal lifesaver in some events. Thanks to that, Kaede had been able to save him from more _precarious_ situations which were particularly draining.

 

The reason why he had to feed so early was that he’d finished working on a case recently, and he tended to ignore basic needs while doing so. His uncle tried to reprimand him on that but… it was the blind leading the blind in that sense.

 

But if Kokichi needed to feed as well… “ _Your_ reserves are low?” Shuuichi asked, and the skepticism was all too evident. He checked… no, Kokichi’s reserves were _very_ well topped. There was no real reason for him to be feeding, because by this point it wouldn’t even be for maintenance, it would just be excessive, to a stupid degree. With the actual situation outside the school, Kokichi was in far better shape than he was, in case of any emergency, and he didn’t seem like the type to be a glutton.

 

To say this was suspicious would be like saying the sky was blue.

 

“Nope! I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Kokichi said, opening the cooler and taking out a bottle casually. “Who said this was for me in the first place?”

 

What. That implied… “ _What…_ ”

 

“Nishishi, that’s a lie!”

 

“Why do you _do_ that?” Shuuichi suddenly felt drained, and he was sure the question wouldn’t be answered. He rubbed his right temple, feeling discomfort. He needed more blood, he couldn’t deal with Kokichi’s shit right now.

 

“Why did I do what, my beloved Saihara?” Kokichi asked, a mocking tone in his voice, contrasting with the sickeningly innocent expression he’d put on his face.

 

Saihara just tuned Kokichi and his nonsense out. He needed to finish feeding, he didn’t have time for the little liar’s games.

 

He tossed the empty bottle in the trash and looked in the cooler… wait it was open? Who’d left it open?

 

That wasn’t necessary to worry about…

 

One more bottle, or two? His throat felt like it was on _fire_ at the sheer thought…

 

Two would be best; his throat was burning… Yes, two should be enough.

 

He had no idea why he’d suddenly become so thirsty, or why it had overridden every other rational thought in his head. All he knew was that he needed to feed and feed now.

 

He quickly lost track of his surroundings…

 

He didn’t notice Kokichi slipping away.

 

…---…

 

Kokichi sighed in relief as he closed the cafeteria door behind him, smiling as he turned forward. “Thanks, Amami,” he said. The smile this time wasn’t as exaggerated as the ones he flashed around to the rest of the class.

 

“You’re welcome,” Rantaro said, crossing his arms. “Although, you were lucky I agreed to help you with this; that I was going to top off my reserves tonight in the first place. Otherwise, I don’t how you could pull this off. You _knew_ Saihara would be there first…” Kokichi was probably doing this deliberately to shake him off, too.

 

“I know that, please spare me the lecture.” That was short. Rantaro suppressed the urge to raise an eyebrow.

 

“Alright,” Rantaro said, sighing. “I just hope whatever you’re planning isn’t too outrageous.” Naturally, Kokichi would never let him know the full story until everything was concluded. Rantaro rolled his eyes.

 

“Nishishi, oh ye of little faith! You just wait and see for yourself! After all, I’ve been at this kind of work for the past twenty years! Relax, I know what I’m doing.”

 

Rantaro didn’t even bat an eyelid at Kokichi’s regular nonsense. “Kokichi, I’ve stopped the spell now, his reserves are filled.” A clear signal.

 

“Aww, you want me to leave? Okay, I’ll do what my beloved Amami wants!”

 

“Just be careful, Kokichi. It’ll be pretty bad if you get caught.”

 

“Worry about yourself, Rantaro,” Kokichi said, suddenly with a  serious expression. Not only that, but using his first name… with that, he took off down the halls.

 

It was times like this that Rantaro cursed his big-brother instincts. Even though Kokichi was slightly older than him, but an annoying pest as well, he felt compelled to humor him simply because of his young, innocent appearance. His puppy dog eyes reminded him of his sisters too damn much… He sighed and moved to enter the cafeteria.

 

“Rantaro wait!” It was Kaede’s voice, and a few seconds later, she was beside him.

 

“Hello, Kaede, he said.

 

“Hi You’re going to feed as well?” she asked.

 

 “Mm hmm.” He had his hand on the door handle, intending to go in.

 

“I want to ask you something,” Kaede said. A slightly odd request, but, seeing as it was Kaede, it couldn’t be too intrusive.

 

“Alright. Ask away.”

 

“What were you and Kokichi talking about?” _And so Rantaro Amami became deceased,_ he thought sarcastically.

 

And there was the clincher. “Nothing of importance.”

 

The cafeteria door swung open, and they barely stepped out of the way as Shuuichi narrowly avoided bumping into them.

 

The detective blushed slightly and smiled apologetically. “Ah! Sorry… you guys were talking about something? I would say I was sorry to interrupt, but…”

 

“It’s fine, Shuuichi,” Kaede reassured him.

 

“Alright… have either of you seen Kokichi? He left just now, while I was feeding.”

 

“He was talking to Rantaro about something, then he ran off, Kaede said, pointing to the west. “He ran in that direction.”

 

“That’s interesting… he was dancing around answering me directly in the cafeteria when I asked him something. Then he… left at one point. I suddenly got so thirsty I lost track of things and I can’t pinpoint precisely when he left.”

 

“That’s odd.”

 

“It is,” Rantaro said. “Want to talk about it after Kaede and I feed?” _And thus, begins the digging of his own grave._ In his defense, Kaede would have raised this up anyway.

 

Shuuichi shrugged. That would be fine. Where would we meet up?”

 

“Maybe in the library?” Kaede said.

 

Shuuichi nodded.

 

“That’s fine,” Rantaro said. He was going to have to work out how to lie his way through this… though having Kokichi for a friend, a person would pick up the art of lies easily. Besides, he’d known he’d signed up for trouble when he’d agreed to help Kokichi hide whatever ridiculous scheme he had up his sleeve this time. Even thought his seemed infinitely more dangerous and complex than whatever he’d pulled before…

 

Shuuichi left, and he and Kaede made small talk as they entered the cafeteria.

 

 _This had better work,_ he thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how was this development? Also like I said before, constructive criticism is welcome! (And comments are appreciated!)


	3. Chapter Three: Unpleasant Remembrance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The topic everyone has been dancing around suddenly returns, in all of its unpleasant glory.

**Chapter Three**

 

Rantaro, Shuuichi and Kaede were sitting at a library table, talking quietly. They’d gotten a table near the back of the library to avoid detection if someone else came in. However, it was unlikely that they would notice anyone’s arrival because they were deeply involved in their discussion.

“So, your thirst suddenly increased out of the blue?” Kaede asked.

“And around that time, Kokichi left?” Rantaro added.

Shuuichi nodded. “But if what you said lines up, it only let up around the time Kokichi left, or maybe slightly before.”

“Maybe he didn’t have enough stamina to maintain it?” Kaede suggested.

“I doubt that,” Shuuichi said. “His reserves are still high, despite all the trouble he stirs up all the time. Say he  _ did _ do it, it would just be to make sure no one else got affected by spell residue.”

“So we’re concluding that he cast a spell to distract you,” Rantaro said.

“For now.”

“For now?”

“You’re still a suspect.”

“Shuuichi!” Kaede said.

“It’s the truth. From what Kaede said, there’s a possibility that you were outside the cafeteria the entire time. She probably only saw the tail end of your conversation you and Kokichi had. Say you were the one who cast the spell. He could have snuck out after you distracted me, and the conversation would have occurred. Then he ran off, Kaede came over there, and I left.

“But that would require the both of you to be planning something.” Shuuichi’s eyes briefly flashed. “There’s a pretty high choice you  _ are _ planning something.”

“Shuuichi, slow down!” Kaede said. “They barely know each other; they almost never interact with each other, thoughtless of coming together to plan something!”

“But they could have known each other before they came here,” Shuuichi countered. “You met Sayaka Maizono before coming to this school, and I’ve had brief interactions with Kyoko Kirigiri outside the school. Rantaro and Korekiyo had seen each other before coming to the school, on their travels. There is no reason that Kokichi and Rantaro wouldn’t have known each other before now.

“They could just be pretending not to know each other, or simply not talking often with each other.”

“Even at that, you’re going too quickly on this hunch, Shuuichi!” Kaede countered. “We don’t know who is skilled at magic and who isn’t! Most vampires never master magic above the basic disguise magic! You’re jumping to conclusions!”

“However,” Shuuichi launched his own counter, “how do you know they haven’t mastered magic above the basic level! Hope’s Peak may not exclusively pick high tiers, but most of the vampires who have attended this school usually display strong magical proficiency, or a highly valued talent. On rare occasions, both. Which means both everybody and nobody would be a suspect if this was beyond just us. However, now both Rantaro and Kokichi are under suspicion.”

“Shuuichi, that’s still-”

“It’s okay,” Rantaro said, cutting Kaede off. “Shuuichi is just doing what any normal detective would do in this situation.”

“It still seems to be a little reaching that he’s already suspecting you’re both planning something!”

“Well, you can’t blame him. I’m not a suspicious guy, but most people think I’m shady.”

Shuuichi sighed. “I apologize if I came on too strong, but with what’s been going on lately, I can’t help but be suspicious. Honestly, I should have been more cautious of my surroundings…”

Both Rantaro and Kaede winced. That was a very good reason for suspicion…

“But still, Shuuichi! We’re still high school students, don’t you think you could cut some slack?” Kaede didn’t really like this.

“No,” Shuuichi said. “When someone has the talent of, say, ‘Ultimate Supreme Leader’ or ‘Ultimate Yakuza,’ they tend to me more likely to disobey school regulations. That usually leads to them and people close to them being common suspects whenever something happens.” Some of Kaede’s optimism had rubbed off on him, but he couldn’t be as trusting as she was.

“But –”

“He has a point, Kaede,” Rantaro said. “With the Butcher going around, everyone is held under more scrutiny than usual.”

“Is  _ every  _ serial killer a vampire now? That’s not even a real excuse!”

“Kaede, please calm down.”

“I won’t! This is getting completely ridiculous! All of these extra, unnecessary restrictions and all the increased suspicion everyone’s carrying for one another! Even though they don’t say it out loud, it’s obvious that only a few people actually trust each other and aren’t scared!”

“Well, serial killers aren’t usually a popular topic in most people’s discussions, vampire or not. Most people are probably still trying to deny it in their minds. Most  _ humans _ anyway.”

“Why do you have to resort to –”

“Kaede, that’s actually true,” Shuuichi said. “Most humans… would already be wary of murder, and since they aren’t exposed to death on such a regular basis, they would be more likely to deny it and pretend nothing is amiss. Not to mention, some of the murders have been uncomfortably close to home for some of them.”

“But why are vampires the ones under suspicion this time?”

“That’s confidential information. All I’ll tell you is the murders are too perfect to have been done by a human. They weren’t even being subtle with that.

Silence overtook them after that, and they soon disbanded.

…---…

If anyone had asked Kaito if he was sleeping well, he would always say that he was, denying symptoms like bags under his eyes, chronic sleepiness and constant yawning. He was Kaito Momota, Luminary of the Stars! Nothing could come between him and a good night’s sleep!

**_(Except for things he couldn’t deny.)_ **

He sighed, sitting up. What time was it? The glowing numbers on the digital clock said 12:42. Fantastic. He was losing sleep over something absolutely nobody was worried about.  _ (Externally, that is…) _

It was a recent string of horrific murders; a new serial killer. The victims were mutilated badly: throats torn out, ribs messily broken, their abdomens ripped open and their intestines strewn every which way, and their faces mutilated beyond recognition. Dental records were needed to identify the victims.  _ (And that was all they knew about the psycho. _ **_No cause for panic, right?_ ** _ ) _

He shuddered. This new serial killer was called “The Butcher,” and was said to be worse than Genocider Syo.  **_(That wasn’t reassuring, not at all!)_ **

With the Genocider, at least there was a pattern to their victims. Males around the age range of fourteen and thirty.  **_(So what if he was a potential target, at least he knew how to stay safe!)_ **

The Butcher attacked people indiscriminately. Males and females of varying ages had been slaughtered like that for the past six weeks, and apparently the police could find no pattern in the killings. Senior citizens, high school students, even children…  **_(He felt sick to his stomach…)_ **

**_(Nobody was truly safe.)_ **

The strange thing was that nobody talked about it.

Genocider Syo was talked about  _ a lot _ . Entire forums were dedicated to trying to decipher their motives and their identity, and the news also spent a lot of time doing the same thing, in addition to the official work of the police.  _ (Rumors said that the police had gotten a headway on figuring out who it was, thank goodness.) _

As for The Butcher, however, absolutely no one said a thing on speculating the person’s identity or their motives. The only thing people talked about were the already known facts Even that was only spoken about when it had to be discussed on the news. The subject was quickly dropped every time it was brought up. As in, within seconds.

_ (It was fucking eerie, entire crowds would fall silent as it was discussed, and then discussion would suddenly resume after, loud and cheerful and  _ **_fake_ ** _ , as if to cover it up. Like a fucking hive mind, or mind control.) _

Ant that was when it was  _ tolerated.  _ When it wasn’t, people would be immediately told to shut up. Sometimes it escalated to physical violence if they tried to keep talking. If it was online, the person would be warned, or even banned from the forum immediately.  _ (And then people would act as if it never fucking happened,  _ **_what the hell._ ** _ ) _

Why? It was unclear, but there was only one potential answer to it. At every crime scene, there was a message carved into the wall. “Speak and die. Be silent and live.”

**_(Nobody wanted to die, so they never talked about it, yeah? Common sense and logic, right?)_ **

Kaito sighed. He couldn’t even lie convincingly to  _ himself _ anymore… he was scared as hell. A few of those murders had taken place close to the neighborhood he lived in, and he was scared for his grandparents. They probably knew about it, but they were old, they couldn’t protect themselves well… And his neighborhood also had a bad track record when it came to criminal activity…

_ (His grandparents couldn’t be attacked; they were all he had. Ever since his parents died in a car accident when he was little, they’d taken care of him.  _ **_Please no, don’t let them fucking die--_ ** _ ) _

No, dammit! He couldn’t be scared for goodness sake! There was nothing to worry about, he was overreacting! Sure, his neighborhood was known for a few crimes, but that didn’t mean that this one would hit it, right? Yeah, there was nothing to worry about… to worry was to be a coward. He was Kaito Momota, Luminary of the Stars! He feared nothing! It would all just pass without incident, nothing to be afraid of, right?

**_(Right?!)_ **

He swallowed thickly, then got out of bed. He looked at himself in the mirror and grimaced. He looked like crap. He was sweaty, his clothes were wrinkled to hell and back, his hair looked like a bird’s nest and he just generally looked like trash.

This was one of those nights where he wouldn’t be able to compel himself to close his eyes, he knew it. All he could do was take a cold shower and try to steer his thoughts away from the homicidal maniac that was tearing up Japan, at least for now.

Besides, it wasn’t like either of them would attack anytime soon, right? It had been months since Genocider Syo had showed up, and the past two weeks had seen no sign of the Butcher…

**_(Out of sight, out of mind. What you didn’t know didn’t hurt you.)_ **

Yep, that was it! Just… forget about it. It wouldn’t do any good to keep thinking about it anyway.


	4. Chapter Four: Deductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shuuichi analyzes the modus operandi of The Butcher, the serial killer who has recently sent Japan into eerie silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mild gore warning? It's not described in detail, but just in case.

**Chapter Four**

 

By that point, the impromptu group of Shuuichi, Rantaro and Kaede had dissolved, each going on their separate ways. However, they’d parted on a sour note. Rantaro had been quiet and passive, accepting all the potential implications of his actions that Shuuichi was throwing at him. Kaede didn’t like it one bit, and was angry by the time they left.

 

While Rantaro had left seemingly with no hard feelings, Kaede had practically left with a minor grudge, both annoyed and sad. Shuuichi wished he could make her feel better, but… she needed to face this truth: not everyone was as trustworthy as one would like to think.  _ Everyone _ could be a suspect if a crime occurred under the correct circumstances.

 

Shuuichi sighed, rubbing his right temple. He needed to focus right now. He grit his teeth as he looked over the case files for The Butcher case. All of the humans were mutilated grotesquely, and there was the message that came along with the crime scenes, both reminiscent of Genocider Syo. 

 

Unlike Genocider Syo, no weapons seemed to have been used at the crime scene except a sharp knife which was used to carve the message present at each location. The police could find no evidence of weapons being used on the victims even though they were practically turned inside out. They couldn’t understand it.

 

But he could.

 

The blood was confined to the room the body was in, no trails leading out of the room, or even around the room, confined to the corpse and anything in immediate contact with it. 

 

Anything that could point to the culprit was eliminated. In fact, on the night of the murder, the entire house underwent a thorough cleanup. 

 

Not only that, but all of the places where the murders had occurred were completely shut off. Not only were the rooms the bodies were in locked, every door in the houses were locked, obviously work of the serial killer. And yet, no fingerprints could be found, not a hair out of place, nothing to trace the culprit. The police was astonished, and stumped.

 

But that was where the culprit outed themselves. This was  _ almost  _ too perfect for a human to pull off. However, a vampire or werewolf could do this with ease, depending on their age.

 

Striking out humans and focusing on the theory of either vampire or werewolf, they would have to be very skilled, and thus, old. In fact, it could even be a wraith. However, no claw marks were found on the bodies, which would mean the murderer had retained human form. Each of those species could tear a human apart with their bare hands easily.

 

Shuuichi grimaced. This could mean that each of those monsters could soon potentially get put under harsh surveillance.

 

But for the life of him, he couldn’t understand why a rampage like this had occurred, in this day and age. This was all done deliberately. This wasn’t just some lunatic exercising bloodlust upon human beings; it wa all done in a professional, deliberate manner.

 

Thr throats were torn open with a specific vampire technique called the “bloom” technique. Said technique consisted of ripping open a human throat completely, vocal cords and all. It was a simple move that all young vampires were taught when they first began hunting.This was because it was the simplest and easiest way of getting blood. However, it was also sloppy and a surefire way of leaving evidence behind and getting caught.

 

The gutting, however, was more of a werewolf and wraith technique, even though vampires used it occasionally. It was one of the more difficult moves to master. He didn’t know the move personally, but he knew its effects. The human on the receiving end would be disemboweled, with a crude tear through their torso, starting just beneath their ribs and going down. From there, it would be easy work for their internal organs to be consumed, seeing as they would be spilled out all over the surrounding area. Personally, it was too messy for his tastes. Even then, it was hard enough with  claws, and yet they had used their human hands…

 

That was what made it confusing. Whoever did it had to be highly skilled, and that would usually mean that they would have enough knowledge and discipline to avoid doing something like this. Not only that, but they wouldn’t gain anything from this at all.

 

Not to mention, with how quickly this had escalated, they were trying to get some kind of attention from this. Were they trying to blow their own cover? Were they trying to enact a vendetta on someone else? The latter seemed more plausible, but that brought up several more questions that he wasn’t currently able to answer.

 

What he did know was that magic had to be involved in this to a degree. People would ordinarily be unable to keep their mouths shut about this kind of crime, and now, people were abnormally tight-lipped about it.People actively banished it from their minds in order to carry on the pretense that all was well. Even he was affected by it; he’d been dancing around the topic for weeks! That message on the wall… it could have some sort of spell attached to it...

 

_ (Maybe he would thank Kokichi the next time he saw him, for forcing him to focus on this case.) _

 

Wait.  _ Kokichi _ . He hadn’t drunk the blood he’d gotten from the cooler had he? He didn’t even need it, and he didn’t seem like the type for gluttony. Shuuichi tapped his fingers on the desk in a disjointed rhythm.

 

Ruling out gluttony, there was no real reason to hoard blood unless you were preparing for some sort of unknown disaster to happen. That, and he was sure that Kokichi didn’t need frequent feedings like Angie did. Then he would either be preparing in order to have an available blood supply to replenish his energy from, or…

 

Shuuichi’s eyes widened.

 

Of course, it was an extreme theory but… he swallowed heavily. Surely this couldn’t cause enough conflict to warrant that, could it?  _ (He hoped not, otherwise this could add a whole new layer of misery to the entire fiasco that was being charaded as a case.) _

 

Kokichi was highly intelligent, that much he knew. That would mean he knew just how much suspicion he was throwing onto himself with this particular stunt.  _ (And just how much trouble he could be in if the less optimistic theory was correct.)  _ And for all of Rantaro’s placidity, Shuuichi was sure that he didn’t know the entirety of what Kokichi was planning, even if he was helping Kokichi hide it.

 

_ (For goodness sakes, this was getting more and more ominous the more he looked into it… he’d expected it, but for this level of suspicion to fall on  _ **_members of the student body so quickly_ ** _ … and despite many people thinking the contrary, Korekiyo was nowhere near it.  _ **_How ironic…_ ** _ ) _

 

With a title like “Ultimate Supreme Leader,” Kokichi was bound to cause trouble, but this was so early in the school year that it was almost ridiculous. Not only was it bad timing, but it was bound to make distrust come up very quickly. They hardly knew each other and with this coming out of seemingly nowhere, people would be a lot less inclined to trust each other, which could cause more people to formulate plans like this, or worse. 

 

**_(How fantastic.)_ **

 

What was Kokichi planning, and why was he planning something at all? Why did he simultaneously include and exclude Rantaro in this plan? In fact, why was Rantaro involved in the first place? Just how did they know each other prior to attending Hope’s Peak, and how was it influencing their interactions, or lack thereof, now?

 

**_(So many questions, so few answers. Isn’t it a shame?)_ **

 

Shuuichi closed his eyes for a minute, trying to maintain order in his mind. Even though he was a detective, he couldn’t figure out everything at once. Things would fall into place as more evidence was gotten, when he could analyze things better.

 

He sighed. He’d been at this for hours and he was sure the sun would come up soon. At the very least, he needed to take a break for now, even though he’d come back to it all later.  _ (He had to pace himself, or at least try to, right?) _

 

It was hard for him to do this; most times he ended up working himself to the bone, but this case hit a bit too close to home for his liking, and it wasn’t just in physical location. This case just felt like complete chaos was going to occur at some point; it felt dangerous.

 

It was one of the biggest cases he’d handled before, and there were barely any leads on this, even with the extra layer of knowledge he had compared to the police. In fact, that made it more confusing. He sighed, going over what he had managed to learn about the case.

 

The serial killer could be either a vampire, werewolf or a wraith. Whoever they were, they were older, most probably over two hundred years old, in order to have the knowledge and experience required to pull this off. They also seemed to have the ulterior motive of a vendetta against somebody else. In fact… the person they had this vendetta against could be younger than them.

 

The throat ripping technique was a basic move. The one they used to disembowel the victims was a highly advanced one. So in this case, it could be that someone younger than them humiliated them somehow, but why would it warrant this scale of vengeance? Not only that, but this was a particularly variable theory.

 

Not only that, but looking at potential people who fit the bill, Hope’s Peak was a breeding ground for potential offenders in that regard. Sure, its graduates alway did well in life, but plenty of them had proven to be game changers, and in the world of the supernatural, the elders didn’t usually take well to that. Hope’s Peak was well known for both outstanding individuals and outstanding troublemakers.

 

Taking the theory further, this could all depend on their two ages. Their biological age and their chronological age. How old they looked versus how old they actually were.

 

Taking that into account and looking at the students here… he could think of a few potential offenders. This would be easier if he knew everyone’s chronological ages, but he supposed it wasn’t really necessary; some of them were probably so young that the differences in their chronological and biological ages was negligible, if there were any differences in the first place.  _ (Like himself for example. An appearance of around sixteen, but his chronological age was twenty.) _

 

Some people had drastic differences between their two ages, and who was to say that none of them could be in the school? And if that was true, then it was easy to see just how they could push someone to such limits.

 

Respect was still based more on on biological appearance. Say, if there was one vampire who was five hundred years old yet retained a childish physique, and another one half their age who looked like an adult. Without knowing their ages, the one who looked like an adult would be respected first. However, if their chronological ages were revealed, the one who looked like a child would commandeer even more respect than the other would have, thanks to their age.

 

_ (In the vampire courts, this was why everyone knew the two ages of everyone else. Or at least, that was what applied in the higher ranks of the court. Since he was only a low-ranked noble, he couldn’t say for sure…) _

 

If he went further with this theory, then at least one of the students here could have a wide gap between their two ages… 

 

This made the school seem far less safe than it had seemed before. He had heard rumors about the school before of course, but now, looking at this case… he had to wonder if they were true or not.

 

The atmosphere of the school seemed to get a bit more ominous.


	5. Chapter 5

I have to apologize to anyone who was looking forward to seeing the story get continued, but I'm discontinuing it.

Between the fact that I had no idea where I was really going to the plot, to the fact that I've lost inspiration and interest in continuing this story, I'll have to declare it as discontinued. 

I apologize if you were looking forward to seeing this story get continued.


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